Installation for investigating objects using magnetic resonance

Abstract

An installation for investigating objects ( 10 a ) using magnetic resonance comprising a safety room ( 1 ) which has gastight walls ( 1 a - c ) and having a magnet system ( 9 ) for producing a homogenous magnetic field in an investigational volume ( 13 ), the magnet system ( 9 ) comprising a gastight outer shell ( 19 ) which is penetrated in a shell region ( 29 ) by feed-throughs ( 39 a - d ) into the interior of the magnet system ( 9 ), is characterized in that the magnet system ( 9 ) is arranged in the safety room ( 1 ), and one of the gastight walls ( 1 a - c ) is penetrated in an access region ( 1 e ), wherein a gastight connecting element ( 14 ) is present between the access region ( 1 e ) and the shell region ( 29 ) which, at its ends, is connected in a gastight manner to the gastight wall and the gastight outer shell ( 19 ) respectively, so that access from outside the safety room ( 1 ) is available to the shell region ( 29 ) and the feed-throughs there ( 39 a - d ), that access being sealed in a gastight manner with respect to the safety room ( 1 ). A part of the gastight shell of the magnet system thereby effectively becomes part of the wall of the safety room.

1. An installation for investigating an object using magnetic resonance, the installation comprising:
 a gastight wall structure defining a safety room; 
 a magnet system for producing a homogenous magnetic field in an investigational volume; 
 a gastight outer shell disposed about said magnet system, said gastight outer shell having a shell region structured and dimensioned to facilitate access into an interior of said magnet system; 
 a gastight connecting element defining an access region, said gastight connecting element connected in a gastight manner between said gastight wall structure and said gastight outer shell, proximate said shell region; and 
 feed-throughs passing between said gastight connecting element and said shell region, wherein said gastight connecting element provides access to said feed-throughs and said shell region from outside said safety room, said access being sealed in a gastight manner with respect to said safety room, wherein said connecting element comprises a first partial connecting element which is fixedly connected to said wall structure and a second partial connecting element which is fixedly connected to said gastight outer shell, wherein said first and said second partial connecting elements are, in turn, connected to each other in a gas tight manner. 
 
   
   
     2. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein the object to be investigated is contaminated, said room being configured such that no contamination can penetrate to an outside of said safety room or such that the specifications of “Biosafety Level 4” are observed. 
   
   
     3. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein low pressure prevails in said safety room relative to an external atmosphere. 
   
   
     4. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein said safety room is accessible through at least one lock. 
   
   
     5. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein said safety room has an air filtering system or is connected to such a system. 
   
   
     6. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein the object to be investigated is disposed in a closed container during investigation. 
   
   
     7. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein single-use RF antennae are provided in said safety room, said antennae being structured for disposed thereof after use. 
   
   
     8. The installation of  claim 1 , further comprising a control or maintenance room disposed adjacent to said safety room, said control or maintenance room having a console and/or a power supply unit, wherein a wall between said safety room and said control or maintenance room comprises a gastight and RF-tight window. 
   
   
     9. The installation of  claim 8 , wherein a wall disposed between said safety room and said control or maintenance room comprises a filter plate having ducts. 
   
   
     10. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein said gastight connecting element is disposed at a ceiling of said safety room. 
   
   
     11. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein said connecting element comprises metal or stainless steel. 
   
   
     12. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein said connecting element is welded to at least one of said wall structure and said outer shell. 
   
   
     13. The installation of  claim 1 , wherein said first and said second partial connecting elements are welded to each other. 
   
   
     14. The installation of  claim 13 , wherein said connecting element comprises flexible portions or metallic bellows. 
   
   
     15. An installation for investigating an object using magnetic resonance, the installation comprising:
 a gastight wall structure defining a safety room; 
 a magnet system for producing a homogenous magnetic field in an investigational volume; 
 a gastight outer shell disposed about said magnet system, said gastight outer shell having a shell region structured and dimensioned to facilitate access into an interior of said magnet system; 
 a gastight connecting element defining an access region, said gastight connecting element connected in a gastight manner between said gastight wall structure and said gaslight outer shell, proximate said shell region; and 
 feed-throughs passing between said gastight connecting element and said shell region, wherein said gastight connecting element provides access to said feed-throughs and said shell region from outside said safety room, said access being sealed in a gastight manner with respect to said safety room, 
 wherein said connecting element is funnel-shaped with a larger opening on a wall structure side thereof to facilitate access to said feed-throughs from outside said safety room. 
 
   
   
     16. An installation for investigating an object using magnetic resonance, the installation comprising:
 a gastight wall structure defining a safety room; 
 a magnet system for producing a homogenous magnetic field in an investigational volume; 
 a gastight outer shell disposed about said magnet system, said gastight outer shell having a shell region structured and dimensioned to facilitate access into an interior of said magnet system; 
 a gastight connecting element defining an access region, said gastight connecting element connected In a gastight manner between said gastight wall structure and said gastight outer shell, proximate said shell region; and 
 feed-throughs passing between said gastight connecting element and said shell region, wherein said gastight connecting element provides access to said feed-throughs and said shell region from outside said safety room, said access being sealed in a gastight manner with respect to said safety room, 
 wherein said magnet system comprises a superconducting magnetic coil and said gastight outer shell is an outer periphery of a magnet cryostat. 
 
   
   
     17. The installation of  claim 16 , wherein said feed-throughs comprise power leads to magnetic coils and/or shim coils, filling ducts, evaporation ducts, and/or quench ducts for cryogenic fluids or helium present in said cryostat. 
   
   
     18. The installation of  claim 16 , further comprising a refrigerator cold head disposed in said shell region to which access is provided from outside said safety room via said connecting element. 
   
   
     19. The installation of  claim 16 , further comprising an overpressure valve disposed on said gastight outer shell outside said shell region, and a gastight overpressure duct connected between said overpressure valve and said connecting element.